학술논문

Saqqar: A 34 km diameter impact structure in Saudi Arabia.
Document Type
Article
Source
Meteoritics & Planetary Science. Nov2015, Vol. 50 Issue 11, p1925-1940. 16p.
Subject
*IMPACT craters
*SILICICLASTIC rocks
*CRETACEOUS Period
*BOUGUER gravity
*SYNCLINES
*SANDSTONE
Language
ISSN
1086-9379
Abstract
Here we present the first proof of an impact origin for the Saqqar circular structure in northwestern Saudi Arabia (Neville et al. ), with an apparent diameter of 34 km, centered at 29°35′N, 38°42′E. The structure is formed in Cambrian-Devonian siliciclastics and is unconformably overlain by undeformed Cretaceous and Paleogene sediments. The age of impact is not well constrained and lies somewhere between 410 and 70 Ma. The subsurface structure is constrained by 2-D reflection seismic profiles and six drilled wells. First-order structural features are a central uplift that rises approximately 2 km above regional datums, surrounded by a ring syncline. The crater rim is defined by circumferential normal faults. The central uplift and ring syncline correspond to a Bouguer gravity high and an annular ring-like low, respectively. The wells were drilled within the central uplift, the deepest among them exceed 2 km depth. Sandstone core samples from these wells show abundant indicators of a shock metamorphic overprint. Planar deformation features ( PDFs) were measured with orientations along (0001), {10 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]